Girl sees father ambushed at home

Masked raiders told a nine-year-old girl to say where the safe was as they beat up her father during an attack on a wealthy couple in their home.

The three men ambushed the family when they turned into their drive in Finchley after an evening at the opera.

Detectives are investigating possible links with a number of similar incidents, including the ambush of a couple and their baby at their £2.5million Twickenham mansion two weeks ago in an almost identical raid.

In the latest attack the husband was beaten and badly bruised, a ? 25,000 diamond ring was snatched from his wife's finger and the nine-year-old girl was quizzed on the whereabouts of the safe.

The gang then made off with tens of thousands of pounds worth of goods, including jewellery, designer watches and £900 in cash.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "There is a strong possibility that the couple may have been followed home.

"We have had other cases where people have been followed home as they returned from the West End and then robbed. It is possible, as they do have a high value car, they may well have been targeted.

"There have quite a few similar incidents recently. We are looking at the possibility that they may be linked, including the Twickenham case."

The family's ordeal began as they arrived home in their Mercedes shortly before 1am yesterday morning after seeing Carmen at the Royal Albert Hall.

The three men, described as smartly dressed and well spoken, pounced on the husband. After beating him and stealing his wrist watch as well as cash, all three family members were dragged into the house.

When they failed to find the safe they continued beating the husband before asking the daughter where it was.

They then fled leaving the couple, who are white and in the fifties, in a state of shock. Their daughter is said to be severely traumatised by the attack.

The man suffered a black eye, facial bruising and injuries to his back, while his wife and daughter were shaken but unhurt.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "The property stolen included a £25,000 diamond ring, a briefcase stolen in the attack which was recovered in Park Road, St John's Wood, a Filofax recovered in Holland Park, £900 cash, Baume and Mercier gentlemen's and ladies' watches, a Louis Vuitton handbag, a passport and driving licence, bank documents and keys."

The three attackers were described as black, between 5ft 11ins and 6ft 1ins, aged between 25 and 30 and dressed in dark clothing, including balaclavas and gloves.

Detectives are becoming increasingly concerned at the spate of violent attacks in which wealthy families are targeted at their homes.

In the Twickenham attack, the couple and their fiveweekold baby were returning home when they were ambushed by between five and eight attackers. Their guard dogs were drugged and the couple were bound in tape and told they would be killed as their home was ransacked.

The 30-year-old father, who does not want to be identified, said: "As we came in the front door we were attacked by a group of between six and eight men.

"The baby went flying. The guy with the axe ran at my wife with the weapon raised above his head. It was absolutely terrifying. Three or four of them knocked me to the ground and pinned me down."

The baby was strapped into a portable car seat and was unhurt only because it landed the right way up. His father, however, sustained two broken ribs as well as cuts and bruises.

He said the gang, who were in their late teens or early twenties, repeatedly threatened to kill him and his 27-year-old wife, demanding cash which they believed he stored around the house.

"I kept telling them I didn't have any cash but that they could have anything else," he said. "Their behaviour was very erratic. They kept saying they'd 'cut' or 'stab' me and I really thought I was going to be killed."

Anyone with information in connection with the most recent incident in Finchley is asked to contact Collindale robbery squad on 020 8733 4553 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.